Football-cleat-applying tool



1926. f y W. H. ALBEE FOOTBALL GLEAT APPLYING TooL Filed oct. 4. 1922 J V/A/x/ENTOR y# m f if; ATTORNEY Patented Jan. 5, 1926.

WILLIAM HENRY ALBEE, OF MARLBORO,

PATENT OFFCE.

IWIASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR T0 KOEHLER MANUFACTURING COMPANY, OF MARLBORO, MASSACHUSETTS, A CORPORATION OF MASSACHUSETTS.

FOOTBALL-CLEATAPPLYING TOOL.

Application filed October 4, 1922.

To all whom t may conce/m:

Be it known that I, WILLIAM HENRY ALBEE, a citizen of the United States, residing at Marlboro, in the county of Middlesex and State of Massachusetts, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Football-Cleat-Applying Tools, of which the following is a specification.

It has been a common custom heretofore to equip a football shoe with cleats by assembling lifts of leather to form cleat blocks or blanks, nailing the desired number of these blocks on the bottom of a shoe. and then trimming them with a knife or with a chisel to give them the desired shape. This process obviously was expensive in labor, it involved great danger of damaging the shoe, and it produced cleats which were not uniform in Ishape or appearance.

With a view to overcoming the difficulties experienced in practicing this process, it has been the custom more recently to manufacture the cleats and then to nail the finished cleats on the bottom of a shoe. While this practice is a substantial improvement on the earlier process, it is, nevertheless, open to the objection that the cleats frequently split or crack while the nails are being driven through them, thus necessitating the removal of the defective cleat with the consequent destruction of the cleat, loss of time, and damage to the shoe. A further objection to this practice is that the cleats are often damaged by the nails being driven too far, and while this damage may not be sufficient to necessitate the replacement of the cleat, still it detracts substantially from the appearance of the shoe.

With these consideratio-ns in view, the present invention aims to devise a tool for use in afixing football cleats to the bottom of a shoe which will reduce the labor involved, will prevent the splitting or deforming of the cleat, will avoid the bending of the nails which frequently occurs when they are driven in the usual manner, and will leave the cleats presenting a `substantially uniform and fini-shed appearance.

The nature of the invention will be readily understood from the following description when read in connection with the accompanying drawings, and the novel features Serial No. 592,332.

will be particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

In the drawings,

Figure 1 is a vertical cross sectional view of a tool embodying the invention in the form at present preferred, this-view also showing the manner in which a cleat is affixed to a shoe;

Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the tool shown in Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a bottom view of the tool; and

Fig. 4 is a perspective view of the cleat.

Referring first to Fig. 4, a common form of football cleat is illustrated at C, this cleat consisting of several lifts of leather cemented together and having substantially the shape of the frustum of a cone. Before the cleat is attached, holes are punched almost through it, and several nails 4 are driven nearly through the cleat.

In this condition the cleat isplaced in the desired position on the bottom of a shoe S, Fig. 1, the shoe at this time being supported on an iron last 6 which is inserted therein.

The attaching tool shown comprises an elongated body 7 preferably of cylindrical form, provided at its lower end with a cavity 8, the walls of which are tapered to fit the lateral faces of the cleat C. Opening into the upper end of the cavity 8 are several nail guiding holes l() designed to receive the nails 4 which project from the to .of the cleat. Each of these holes has a river 12 slidably mounted therein, and the several drivers are secured in the lower end of a driver bar or plunger 14 which is slidably mounted in the body 7. The upper end of the driver bar carries a head 15 which is adapted to strike the upper end of the body and limit the downward movement of the drivers. The parts are so Vproportioned that at this time the lower ends of the drivers 12 project very slightly beyond the lower ends of the holes 10. In order to prevent the driver bar 14 from turning in the body 7, the bar is grooved, as shown at 16, and a set screw 17 thread-ed through the wall of the body has its end located in said groove. This arrangement also limits the upward stroke of the driver bar.

In using the tool the cleat C is placed in the cavity 8 with the nails 4 projecting into 15 vents oif'erdriving the nails.

the holes 10, as clearly shown in Fig. 1. The cleat is then moved to the desired position on the shoe while still 'held in the cavity, and the ivorlrinan strikes the head of 5 the driver bar 14 with a inaul or inallet,

thus driving all tour nailsy at once. Ob-

` vifously the driving of the nails can be done by power if desired. lnasinuehas the cleat lits snugly within the cavity 8, it is etleetul0 ally prevented ironi splitting or being other- 20 cavity `to fit it should be provided.

Vilhile I have herein shown and described Athe best embodiment oit iny invention of which I ain at present aware` it ivillbe appreciated that the invention is not limited l5 toeinbodiinent in the precise iorin slio'ivn.

Having thus desc-ribedifny invention, what l desire to e-laiin as ne7 `is: y

l. A football cleat attaching tool, coinprising an elongated bod-y `having` a cavity in 3U oneend thereof, said cavity having inelined Walls to tit snugly against the tapered sides of a football cleat, a series of -nail guiding holes opening into the upper end of said cavity, drivers slidably mounted in said holes, a driver-bar slidably iiiounted in said body and 'having a head to engage said body at the end of its driving stroke, and means l'or preventing said driver bariroi-n turning in the body.

2. A football cleat attaohing tool, coinprising an elongatedv body havinga cavity iii one end thereof in which a football cleat will lit snugly, a serieso'f nail guiding holes opening into the endet said cavity, drivers slidable in said holes, a driver bar slidable in said body and having said drivers secured thereto, and inea-ns for limiting the driving Vstr-olie of said bar sov that the ends of the drivers cannot project,substantially into the space in said cavity occupied by ythe cleat.

3.' A football cleat attaching tool coinprising an elongated body adapted to 'be held in the-hand, said body having a tapered cavity in one end thereof to receive a cleat and eonti'iie the lateral faces of the cleat iv-hile ii'iisten-i-ngs are 'bein-g driven through it, Anail -guidii-ig holes formed in saiid 'body land opening into the eiid oi'vsa'id cav-ity, drivers slidabl'e in said holes, rand A'a bar slidavbly mounted in said body and seeured't'o said drivers. said bar having a head projecting outer the body and v.adapted to be struck by .ifii'iiallel'.-y

y Wniiiniii HENRY wenn. 

